Site Sanitation

Pest control is sanitation. Effective pest control, whether structural pest control, or ornamentals and shrubs is based on site sanitation. Keeping debris properly disposed of will dramatically reduce and control pest populations. For exterior pest control, including reducing issues that affect plant health, clean up all limbs, leaves and debris. Site sanitation will reduce the chance of plant disease. In addition, debris that are cleaned up reduce harborages for other pests, both rodents and insects that if left unchecked may multiply and cause problems inside.
-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

Angie's List Super Service Award

Thanks to our customers, GreenHow was awarded a Super Service Award for 2009 in the pest and termite control categories from Angie's List. Less than 5% of the companies on Angie's List are awarded with the Super Service Award. It is exciting to recieve recognition for great lawn care, pest control and termite control service.
-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

Keep vegetation off structures.

Pruning back vegetation from structures is usually done in midsummer to minimize access trails for insects, such as ants and carpenter ants. This practice of physically removing access for insects to the structure is an important component of integrated pest management. Foundation plants need to be kept off a home or business through regular pruning. Try to keep vegetatation 18 to 24 inches from the structure to allow air movement and prevent pest issues.
-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

Look out for stinging insects.

This time of year, stinging insects from the order Hymenoptera, family Vespidae, such as wasps, hornets and yellow jackets, start to become a concern. Normally, toward the end of July, these stinging insects have developed large enough colonies or nests that they are noticable around structures and other areas used by people. Aerial wasp nests are beginning to reach large enough sizes to require mulitple treatments to kill the nest. Nests that are on structures or near entry ways or where individuals may be stung should be treated and removed.
-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

Angie's List Super Service Award

I just realized I never covered our Super Service Award from Angie's List on the blog. Thanks to our customers, GreenHow was awarded a Super Service Award for 2008 for both lawn fertilization and pest and termite control from Angie's List. Less than 5% of the companies on Angie's List are awarded with the Super Service Award. It is exciting to recieve recognition for great lawn care, pest control and termite control service.

-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

GreenHow, Mexico.

Occasionally we recieve a call for the unrelated business of GreenHow, Mexico, which offers high quality fertilizers and technical service for customers in Mexico from their facility in Guadalajara. Visit the link above for commercial and agricultural applications south of the Rio Grande. This business is not related to our Boston, Massachusetts based lawn care, pest control and termite control company.

-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

Mud Daubers

The mud dauber is a solitary wasp that builds tubes or tunnels of mud in which to lay eggs. These mud tubes or tunnels may be located anywhere on a structure, but are usually either on the foundation or inside the attic, or at the soffit. Generally stone, cement and unpainted wood are preferred surfaces to build on, instead of painted wood. Mud daubers do not sting, and can be recognized by an all black or black with yellow or white legs. A key to differentiate from a flying ant, with whom they are often confused, is the long pedicel (piece between the thorax and abdomen) and curved antennae. Non chemical integrated pest control methods can be safely employed, including removing the mud tubes and screening attic openings.

-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

Octopamine Blocker?

Octopamine is a neurotransmitter that is found in insects and crustaceans. The botanical oil products we use for pest control act by focusing on and interrupting the octopamine neurotransmitter receptors in insects. This leads to a breakdown in the insects central nervous system. These botanical oils are beneficial to our service because when used properly they provide control, and since mammals, birds and fish do not have receptors for octopamine, botanical oils do not effect them adversely.
-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

Trash control for rodents.

Keep rodents out of your life by controlling trash. A key pest control strategy to implement an integrated pest management or green pest management program is to control trash resources. This is true with all pests, especially rodents. Remove trash, especially material with odors like food waste, to a covered, preferably metal or thick plastic, covered trash can. Rinse recyclables off and out before putting into the recycling bin. Store all trash and recycling in a tight, rodent proof area and put out for collection the morning of (not the night before). These practices will reduce mice and rats inside, and tipped cans from raccoons outside.

-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

What does "green" mean? Continued.

What does “green” mean? Continued...
The answer is (obviously) stated what “green” means to us, GreenHow, Inc, in terms of pest control, lawn care and termite control. “Green” is a vague or ambiguous term. The term “greenwashing” is a response by consumers to a perceived or real misuse of the term “green.” Generally speaking “green” means environmentally-friendly products and services. Usually it is self imposed by a business, but it can be part of a certification or accreditation process. In our business lines, which are lawn care, pest control and termite control, the term “green” refers to different aspects. This is a continuation of the brief descriptions, in alphabetical order by our service types, appearing here over the next few days.
Pest Control: Our primary service is Green Pest Management (GPM). GPM or green pest control is considered some an extension of IPM, since they both follow the same foundation, with GPM the use of natural materials including organic or plant based materials (such as rosemary oil), biochemical or microbial materials (such as abamectin) and inorganic, but naturally occurring materials (such as boric acid and diatomaceous earth). Others consider GPM part of IPM, with GPM materials used first, then traditional materials later, in case they don’t work. We consider GPM the use of a set of green materials. We look to outside resources, such as the IPM Institute’s GreenShield, for direction about whether a material is green or not. That helps us present information to customers that is built on a foundation from resources outside our company (to provide clarity to our opinions, which may need help to become focused). We also use NEPMA IPM Registry and others we are pursuing as outside verification (like the NOFA Organic LandCare accreditation mentioned in the last post) that our processes, products and services are “green.”
-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

Life Cycles-Fairly simply explained.

Understanding pest life cycles, or insect development, is critical to pest control. The process is called metamorphosis. There can be critical differences in where pests are located from each stage in an insects life cycle. An IPM or GPM professional must know the differences to be effective. The example is killing an adult fly, without addressing where the larvae are feeding will be ineffective. First, what is metamorphosis? Imagine the butterfly you want in your garden, it is important to understand that it starts as a egg, proceeds through a larval stage, pupates and then becomes the admired adult butterfly. The four types of metamorphosis are without, gradual, incomplete and complete. The first, without metamorphosis, or ametabolous insects, such as silverfish, grow from egg to adult increasing in size and gradually maturing with each molt. All stages are found together. The second type, gradual metamorphosis, includes a set number of molts with definite development of reproductive organs (and wings if applicable) over the stages. Insects that develop through gradual metamorphosis share the same habitat as nymphs and adults and include bed bugs, cockroaches, and termites. The third type, incomplete metamorphosis, includes dragonflies. This type has an aquatic nymph known as naiads. The adults have a different habitat then nymphal stages. Usually, these are not pests. The final type, complete metamorphosis, includes many pests such as ants, fleas, flies, mosquitoes and moths. The larval stage is usually complete different than the adult (think maggot larval stage of winged fly). The differences include not only body type and mouthparts, but also habitat. For an IPM or GPM strategy to be successful, the professional must understand the pests' life cycle.
-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

Do not vacuum.

Many of our customers handle some pest or pest droppings at some point prior to calling us. In this winter season, many people get colds or other respiratory issues. Often customers can't stand the sight of the pests or pest droppings. If you must handle pests, rodents or insects, or their droppings, avoid the urge to vacuum up the debris. Instead simply use a rag or cloth, moistened with water, to dab up the pests and droppings. Vacuuming can put pest parts or droppings into the air, making them airborne. Rodent droppings and many insect parts can aggravate respiratory issues and often contain allergens. To avoid getting a cold, keep you hands clean by washing them often (and moisturizing often to keep them from getting cracked). And use the wet rag method to dab up pests and droppings when cleaning to minimize any risk to your respiratory system.
-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

Can I compost in the winter?

One customer asked me today, Can I compost in the winter? If you have the Earth Machine composter we have given out to Organic Lawn Care customers in the past, you can add material to the composter. Use your countertop container to collect your materials, such as egg shells and fruit and vegetable material and coffee grounds to limit your trips out in inclement weather. Add shredded newspaper or cardboard for your "brown" since your leaf resource is probably under cover of snow or ice. You are cold composting anyway with such a small pile, and in this weather no breakdown will occur, but keep up with adding matter to the pile. Make sure you return the cover tightly to keep out rodents. You do not want to start a rodent or wildlife issue requiring additional pest control service. For further tips, check out this Winter Composting Fact Sheet from Cornell.
-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

Fruit Flies...

Often I hear about fruit fly issues. I can sympathize, in our house there is a lot of fruit. Often we have at least bananas, and usually apples and clementines on the counter and probably grapes, blueberries and sometimes strawberries in the refrigerator. The slow flying, small fruit or vinegar fly shows up occasionally, usually in the summer or fall in the home. The key to residential fruit fly control is sanitation. Children manage to get pieces of fruit under, into and around things you may not have anticipated. For best results in your sanitation efforts, routinely clean your garbage disposer, your compost storage area, and the areas where your children sit for meals or snacks. If you have seat covers, remember to remove and clean under the covers on a regular basis.

-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

Associate Certified Entomologist

I am happy to announce the addition of a Associate Certified Entomologist Certification for our company. GreenHow, Inc. corporate team member Sean Greenhow completed the rigorous ACE exam and was awarded the Certification by the Entomological Society of America.

Fewer than two hundred individuals have earned the ACE designation. This highlights our interest in identifying the correct insect, essential to Integrated and Green Pest Management programs. I will continue to seek out opportunities to continue give our customers the greatest value in pest control by making sure we have the resources to handle the pest issues they face at their homes or businesses.

-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

End of year, 2008.

It is great to end the year and look back at the success and misses, and get to plan for a new year. This year started out with a ordinary termite swarm season, moved into a wet spring and summer, helping to keep the lawns looking great, and ended with a fair amount of rodent activity. Overall, pest control activity was strong. This year we added the soil conditioner option to the lawn care service, improving the soils ability to hold and drain water. We also end the year with plans to add service certifications and accreditations to our programs in 2009, stay tuned.
-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.